It’s always difficult to know what to do when someone asks you to write them a reference for a job you know they’re not up to. But Robert Thornton, a professor of economics, once composed the ideal letter to fit the situation. It is full of double meanings and goes like this: ‘In my opinion you will be fortunate to get this person to work for you. I recommend him with no qualifications whatsoever. No person would be better for the job. I urge you to waste no time in making this candidate an offer of employment. All in all, and without reservation, I cannot say enough good things about him, nor can I recommend him too highly.’
Alternatively, you can just do what the Bible says we should always do: ‘speak the truth in love.’ It takes moral courage to do that, but everyone eventually benefits from it.